Multiple fire crews were dispatched to the scene. There were no immediate reports of injuries, but at least one person was missing, according to his colleagues. They had been unable to contact him and feared he might be inside the building.
According to media, a large fire broke out at the Izvestia Hall building, on Pushkinskaya Square in Moscow at around 5:00 a.m. on February 15 (local time).
According to local media, the fire started in the building's courtyard and quickly spread, completely burning down the Residence bar and the nearby Lookin Rooms nightclub. The fire is still not under control as it continues to tear through the building.
Also due to the fire, 3 out of 4 lanes along Tverskaya Street, towards the Garden Ring, and 1 out of 4 lanes along Bolshoy Putinkovsky Alley were blocked.
Sources said about 70 dangerous gas cylinders may have been stored inside the building and would have exploded if exposed to fire.
Izvestia Hall is a popular event venue and is just a 10-minute walk from the Kremlin. Built between 1925 and 1927, the building housed the printing and editorial offices of the newspaper “Izvestia” for nearly 85 years, until the newspaper moved to a new location in 2011. The reconstruction of the historic part of the building was completed in 2018.
In January, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said a massive fire had engulfed a warehouse in St. Petersburg owned by one of the country's largest online retailers. The fire, which covered 50,000 square meters (50,000 square feet), was rated as level 5, the most serious.
Nearly 300 firefighters and dozens of fire engines and helicopters worked to extinguish the blaze. The Wildberries retail company's press office later confirmed that the warehouse belonged to them and said all employees had been evacuated.
Phuong Anh (Source: RT)
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